


Girls’ Night

by MrToddWilkins



Series: The Foobiverse Revisited [3]
Category: For Better or For Worse (Comics)
Genre: Bonding, Elly tells stories, Family Bonding, Girls' Night, Hen Party, Showers, girl talk, this won’t be long
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2020-10-28 11:29:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20777840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrToddWilkins/pseuds/MrToddWilkins
Summary: The ‘big wedding’ is Mike and Deanna’s wedding





	1. Shower Talk

It was a bright summer day,just more than a week before the big wedding,and Elly was adjusting the shower pressure. Nearby,at the edge of said outdoor shower,Therese Caine stood impassively.

”What’s the water pressure?”  
“65 psi. Is that good enough for you,Thérèse? Or shall I turn it higher?”  
“It’s good enough,Elly.”

Elly’s daughter,Elizabeth,and her son Mike’s bride-to-be,Deanna,were already in the shower. As Elly and Therese entered they were in the midst of a conversation. They stopped talking long enough for Elly to shut the door and turn on the water. It was then that Therese noticed something.

”Oh,Liz. You're such a connoisseur.”  
“Of soap? So?”  
“Anthony collects rare soaps. A soap Cellini might’ve used,a soap that flew on the Drake 2 space mission,the man is insatiable.”  
“What else does he collect? What do you collect,if anything?”  
“He prefers books too,especially Irving Stone’s.”  
“Who?”  
“An American biographical writer. And he also prefers James Michener. I like collecting herbs,as does my mother.”

At this,Elly perked up. “What kinds of herbs,Therese?”

”Mint. My mom runs a small business that identifies different types for potential buyers.”

”Like who?”, Deanna asked.

”Scout troops,biologists,that sort.”

”Sounds interesting.”

For a minute or so,there was silence as the ladies began soaping each other up. Elly tended to Therese,and Liz tended to Deanna. Elly gradually became aware that Therese was speaking to her.

”.....But you see,Elly,Anthony should have a career like me. When we have kids,he'll have to balance me,them,and his job. It’ll be a hell of a task! But here,let me wash your back. Ooh,you’ve got back muscles like I wouldn’t believe.”  
“I’m a jogger,Thérèse.”  
“So am I! Deanna,didn’t you play basketball at Western?”  
“Yes. I was the small forward. Mike filmed some of our games,and helped put them on the news.”  
“Now I remember! You played Dalhousie once,and got hurt! How bad was it?”  
‘“Not that bad. I had to leave the game with my arm around a coach’s shoulders. In fact,Mike visited me while I got better. Isn't that nice? He bought me coffee cakes.”

“Anthony loves coffee cakes! He buys them by the pound!”, Therese said, a mock-shocked look on her face. 

Elly chose that moment to interrupt. “So how far along are you,Therese?”

”A couple of weeks. I found out on Sunday.”

”Wait!”, Deanna said. “You’re pregnant? Congratulations!”, she said, as she gave Therese a hug. “Does Anthony know?”

Therese stood with her hands on her hips,looking scandalized. “Of course he does! The first thing I did was call him with the news.”

Elly smiled. “Well,that marks another addition to our little family.”

The rest of the shower went by in silence. As they dried off, Deanna remarked “Gee,Liz-I never knew ‘bridal shower’ could be so literal-or fun!”

Liz chuckled. “Welcome to the family,Deanna!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The ‘big wedding’ is Mike and Deanna’s wedding


	2. Concerning Guys

Once they had gotten dried and dressed,the girls went into the ‘Pattermanse’,which was a local nickname for the Patterson house. The guys of the family were taking a wine tour,and April was at her friend Becky’s house ,so the girls would have the Pattermanse to themselves for the night. They flopped onto the couches in the living room like they’d just run 10 miles.

It was Elizabeth who first spoke. “Therese,didn’t you say that you’re an only child?”

”Yes. My parents only wanted the one kid. I plan to have at least two. Maybe four,like my grandpa Marcus. I had half the house to myself as a kid.”

Elly grinned. “Me and Phil-that’s my brother,you’ll meet him and his wife Georgia at the wedding-had the run of our house. Our father worked as a historian for the RCAF:he still volunteers at the PAO on occasion. Our mother was a baker,well known around the town we grew up in. Did you know that my dad was offered a job with the Project Megaroc people?”

Deanna sat up,as did the other two. “Get out! Are you serious?”

”Yes! He was offered a position helping collate data from the onboard guidance system.”

Therese said “So he might’ve been famous!”

Elly reclined onto the sofa. “I wish. Me and Phil did get to go with him to see the Cook 8 launch.”

Three pairs of eyes widened. Elizabeth said “Mom,you never told me.”

”Sweetie,I’ve got a photo of it. You know the photo on the mantelpiece,depicting me and Phil in a desert,making goofy faces?

”Yeah?”

”That was us the day before the launch.”

”That’s cool.”

Elly decided to change the topic. “So,Therese,how did you and Anthony meet? You’ve never said.”

”A dance club at university,in the winter. They were playing _Tales from the Vienna Woods,_and my roommate Emma dared me to talk to Anthony. He had a reputation as a geek because he’s good at fixing computers and projector screens for the faculty. Many of them went to school in the ‘60s,when such things weren’t so widespread. Anyways,he asked me out on a date and we went to Delmonico’s.”

Liz perked up. “I hear that their wine is good.”

”It is. So one date turned into another,and look where we are now. The second Anthony learned I was pregnant,he popped the question. I said yes.”

The girls cheered at that. Liz said, “As for me,my dating prospects aren’t very much right now. Eric was a bust,but his roommate Greg.....now there’s a man for you. His dad was a Mountie. He’s studying pharmacology .”

Deanna said “Maybe he and I should compare notes. Being a pharmacist is a similar job,I’m sure he’d appreciate some help. Elly,did you ever work?”

”I do freelance work for _The Valley Voice. _That’s our local newspaper. Mike kind of got his journalistic impulses from me. I used to be a junior correspondent for them. I covered school functions and the like.”

Just then,they heard a car door slam. Elly smiled and got up.

”Looks like Tracey’s here.”

Tracey Mayes was the wife of Michael’s friend Gordon,who ran a profitable garage-cum-restaurant in town. Elizabeth had invited her over for the night.


	3. Tracey’s take

Once Tracey had been properly settled,she accepted a coffee from Elly. She knew all four of them,of course:Elly because she was Michael’s mother,Elizabeth because they had had playdates on occasion,Deanna because she’d been in the same class with her and Mike,and Thérèse because Anthony worked for Gordon.

”How’ve you been,Trace?”,Liz asked.

”Fine. Paul’s now in pre-K,and I’m shopping around for a daycare for Rosemary to go to next year. Over the winter,Gord and I may try for a third pregnancy.”

”That’s wonderful!”,Elly said in her usual overenthusiastic manner. Tracey then turned her attention to Deanna. “How’s the planning going,hon?”

”We’re going on honeymoon in December,aiming to return three days before Christmas.”

”Where are you going?”

”New York City,Philadelphia,Washington,returning by way of Boston and Nova Scotia. Mike wanted to visit Maine,but I shot that down. If I’ve learned anything from Stephen King it’s that Maine is full of crazy people.”


End file.
